Anyone would wonder about the fondness of President Rodrigo Duterte for the image of lions, colors red and white, and even the raised fist as shown evidently in his media interviews and public speeches. Unknown to many Filipinos, such symbolisms definitely ring a bell among Bedans. The cult-like tightness of Bedans for these symbols are attributed to the same traditions shared in San Beda’s more than a hundred years existence since 1901.

It is good that Philippine National Police (PNP) Director General Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa heeded the call of Senator Panfilo Lacson to conduct an internal cleansing of the police service. Such cleansing needs the support of Interior and Local Government Secretary Ismael Sueno and President Rodrigo Duterte.

The DoH insists that the strategy it intends to use, which includes a sex education component, is evidenced-based as studies in other countries show that even in Catholics schools where such strategy was used, students who were into pre-marital sex did not increase, teenage pregnancies decreased, and cased of sexually transmitted diseases like HIV/AIDS also decreased.

Health Secretary Paulyn Jean Ubial is correct in saying that these problems should be dealt with out-of-the-box solutions and that “business-as-usual” approach does not make sense in solving these problems.

The Duterte Administration recently announced that it would stop to the 5-6 business in the country. It basically involves lending money with a twenty percent (20%) monthly interest and is generally identified with Indian nationals who are into such business.

The recent pronouncement of Senator Panfilo “Ping” Lacson about the presence of “pork barrel” in the 2017 national budget is alarming particularly because the Supreme Court has already ruled against such system.